Feeding and delivery means for bottles and the like in decorating machines



ROSS! FEEDING AND DELIVERY MEANS FOR BOTTLES March 31, 1970 AND THE LIKEIN DECORATING MACHINES 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 2, 1967 ATTORNEYjMarch 31 1970 A. T. ROSS! 3,503,329

FEEDING AND DELIVERY MEANS FOR BOTTLES AND THE LIX? IN DECCRATINC-MACHINES 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 2, 1967 r" W I E F/GJ'A I INVENTORl A/vr/m/vr 77 2055/ ATTORNEY;

March 31, 1970 A. T. Rossl 3,503,329

FEEDING AND DELIVERY MEANS FOR BOTTLES AND THE LIKE IN DECORATINGMACHINES Filed Aug. 2, 1967 5 Sheets-Sheet s INVENTOR A V/H0/V) 7 Q0557ATTORNEYS March 31, 1970 I A T. ROSSI 3,503,329

FEEDING AND DELIIVERY MEANS FOR BOTTLES AND THE LIKE IN DECORATINGMACHINES 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Aug. 2, 1967 FIG. 4

INVENTOR ANT/VON) 77 2053/ ATTORNEY} March 31, 1970 A. T. ROSS!3,503,329

FEEDING AND DELIVERY MEANS FORBOTTLES AND THE LIKE IN DECORATINGMACHINES Filed Aug. 2, 1967 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR fl/VTHO V) 77'2015/ ATTORNEY.

United States Patent Office Patented Mar. 31, 1970 US. Cl. 101-40 8Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A machine for applying decoration tothe outer surfaces of objects such as cans or bottles; the objects to'be decorated are received within holders therefor which arecontinuously moved past a decorating station having decoration-producingmeans extending therealong, the objects being rotated as they move pastthe docoration-producing means so that appropriate decoration areapplied to the entire surface of the object; a plurality of decoratingstations may be provided, in which case the rotation of the bottles asthey move from one station to the other is continued, thereby to ensureproper registration between the decorations applied at the two stations;the rotation of the objects within their holders, as they move along oneor the other of the decorating stations or between a pair of separateddecorating stations, is preferably accomplished by urging the bottles,while within their holders, against an elongated element over which theyroll as they are translated through the machine.

The present invention relates to a machine for ap lying decoration to aseries of objects such as cans or bottles, and of doing so in acontinuous fashion, thereby to improve productivity and simplify machineconstruction.

Machines have been known in the past which are capable of applyingdecorations to bottles, can or the like. One such machine is that shownin my prior Patent 3,269,305 of Aug. 30, 1966, entitled Machine forPrinting Upon Bottles and Similar Bodies. One major drawback of themachines of the type previously used, including the machine of myaforementioned prior patent, is that the operation of the machine isintermittent. The objects to be decorated are moved to a decoratingstation, their travel through the machine is interrupted while thedecoration is being applied to them, and then they are moved out fromthe decorating station. This gives rise to appreciable machinecomplexity, produces excessive internal stresses in the machines, thusrequiring the use of structures which are excessively heavy so as to becapable of withstanding those stresses, and greatly limits productivity.Also, in machines of the prior art type it is relatively difiicult toobtain proper registration between decorations applied to the bottles attwo different stations, yet such registration is necessary if, forexample, decorations of different colors relating to different parts ofthe same unitary object to be illustrated are involved.

It is the prime object of the present invention to devise a decoratingmachine capable of operating upon cans, bottles or the like incontinuous fashion. It is a further prime object of the presentinvention to devise such a machine which will not only be functionallyeffective but which also is simple and inexpensive to manufacture,maintain and repair. It is a further prime object of the presentinvention to devise a machine which can be readily incorporated intoexisting production lines, and which can be used with bottles or cans ofspecifically different sizes. It is a further prime object of thepresent invention to devise such a machine in which different types andcharacters of decoration can be applied merely by making minimalmodifications to the machine, and without disturbing its essentialcharacter.

The machine of the present invention is particularly well adapted foruse in conjunction with decoration of the silk screen printing type, butit is not limited thereto. As has been indicated, it may be used todecorate objects of varied types; it is here specifically illustrated asproducing decoration on the outer surfaces of bottles, and the objectsto be decorated will, for purposes of simplicity, hereinafter termedbottles," but it will be understood that that term is here usedgenerically to include other types of objects as well.

To the accomplishment of the above, the decorating stations at whichdecoration producing means are provided extend in a given direction. Thebottles are adapted to be brought into operative association with thedecoration-producing means while they are held so as to be rotatableabout an axis such as to progressively present different areas of theirouter surfaces to the decoration-producing means as they movetherealong. Preferably, and as here specifically disclosed, each bottleis carried to and along the decorating station by means of a holder inwhich the bottle is mounted for free rotation about the aforementionedaxis, the bottle-moving means imparting rotation to the bottles as theyare translated by rolling the bottles along an element which extends thelength of the decoration-producing means. In this way the rotation ofthe bottle, and the presentation of new areas of thedecoration-receiving surface thereof to the decoration-producing means,is synchronized with the movement of the bottle along thedecoration-producing means. When the decoration is to be applied to thebottle by a silk screen or analogous process, the decoration-producingmeans comprises a materialex-pressing means which is moved insynchronism and registration with the bottle as the latter passes alongthe decoration-producing means, thereby to ensure that the ink, paint orthe like is properly expressed through the silk screen as the bottlemoves and rolls thereover. When a plurality of decorating operations areto be performed, the individual decorating stations are spaced from oneanother and the rotation of the bottles is continued as the bottles movefrom one station to the other, thereby ensuring proper registration ofthe decoration produced by the second decorating station with thedecoration produced at the first decorating station.

Bottles may be presented to the machine in a vertical orientation, as iscommon in production lines. The particular embodiment of the machinehere disclosed shifts those bottles to a horizonal position and feedsthem sequentially into a series of holders mounted on a continuous beltor the like. The bottles in the holders are then moved to the decoratingstation where the bottles, still horizontally oriented, are translatedand rotated so that decoration is applied to their outer ordecoration-receiving surfaces. Thereafter the bottles and their holdersare shifted once again to a vertical position, and any suitable meansmay be provided for then removing the bottles from the holders andcarrying them along the production line in vertical orientation.

To the accomplishment of the above, and to such other objects as mayhereinafter appear, the present invention relates to the constructionand arrangement of a decorating machine as defined in the appendedclaims and as 3 described in this specification, taken together with theac companying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an idealized side elevational view, with supporting structureand many details either omitted or shown fragmentarily, of a preferredembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an idealized top plan view thereof;

FIG. 3A is a side elevational view, on an enlarged scale, of the lefthand or entry portion of the machine where the bottles are received,shifted to a horizontal position, and placed within the holderstherefor;

FIG. 3B is a side elevational view of that portion of the machinecomprising a decorating station and associated parts;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view on an enlarged scale taken along theline 44 of FIG. 3B; and

FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 are cross sectional views taken along the lines 55; 66and 77 respectively of FIG. 2.

The machine comprises a framework generally designated A on which thevarious operative parts are mounted. The details of that framework formno special part of the present invention, and hence are here shown onlyin a fragmentary fashion. The machine is adapted to be driven in anyappropriate manner, as by means of the motor B. The machine maygenerally be considered as consisting of a plurality of sections, towit, the infeed section generally designated C which takes bottles andplaces them within the bottle holders generally designated D, thedecorating station generally designated E (two such stations' are hereshown, the second being designated E) where decoration is applied to theouter surface of the bottles, and an output section F where the bottlesare shifted, while still in their holders B, from the horizontalposition where they are decorated back to a vertical position in whichthey are adapted to be removed from the apparatus.

The details of the infeed section C may best be seen in FIG. 3A. Thebottles 2 may be fed to the machine in any appropriate manner, as on theconveyor 4 (which forms no part of the present invention but may be anysuitable conveyor available in the plant in which the machine of thepresent invention is to be used), with the bottles in their customaryupright position. The conveyor 4 feeds the bottles into a helicalrotated feed screw 6 on the machine, the pitch of the screw 6 being suchthat a bottle 2 is received between each pair of opposed screw portions.Thus the feed screw 6 moves the bottles from left to right (as viewed inthe drawings) while maintaining them spaced from one another in desiredfashion. Alongside the feed screw 6 are a series of guides or swords 8,10, 12 and 14, the sword 8 engaging the bottom of the bottle 2, thesword 14 engaging its top, and the swords 10 and 12 engaging its sides.The swords 8-14 are so shaped that as the bottles 2 move along thehelical feed screw 6 they are shifted from a vertical position to ahorizontal position, all as clearly shown in FIG. 3A.

A separate holder D is provided for each bottle 2. Those holders aremounted in properly spaced relation on a continuous belt or link chain16 which rotates over end sprocket wheels 18 and 20 and which isappropriately guided in its travel, by any suitable structural means, inorder to ensure that it travels in the desired path and with the properorientation. Each holder D comprises an open topped cup-shaped member 22of a size and shape such as to receive a bottle 2 therein. The member 22is provided with openings through which rollers 24 extend, those rollersbeing rotatably mounted on the outside of the elements 2 so as to befreely rotatable about axes 26. Those portions of the rollers 24 whichextend into the inner cup of the elements 22 are adapted to engage theside surfaces of the bottle 2 when the latter is received within theholder D, thus holding the bottle 2 within the holder D in a fashionsuch that it is readily rotatable about its vertical axis, that is tosay, about an axis parallel to the bottom of the cup-shaped portion ofthe element 22.

As may be seen in FIG. 3A, as a given holder D picks up a bottle 2 atthe end of-the swords 10 and 12 it is in a horizontal position, with thebottle received therein similarly being held horizontally. As may beseen from FIGS. 1 and 3B, the path of the. endless belt or chain 16 asit leaves the sprocket wheel 18 is at first slightly upwardly inclined.When the belt 16 reaches the decorating station E its path becomeshorizontal, a fixed guiding structure 23 being provided to ensure thatorientation (see FIG. 4), with the holders D and the bottles 2 receivedtherein remaining horizontal. After the belt 16 leaves the decoratingstation E (or the last decorating station E in the event that aplurality of such stations are provided) its orientation is shifteduntil it is vertical and the holders D bars (see FIGS. 5-7) 28, 30, 32and 34 being provided to retain the bottles 2 within their holders Duntil they reach the right hand end of the machine, where the sprocketwheel 20 is horizontal and the belt 16 is vertical. As the bottles 2 arethus presented at the right hand end of the machine (as viewed in thedrawings) they are removed from their respective holders D in anyappropriate fashion and conveyed away from the machine, as by an outputconveyor similar to the input conveyor 4.

Each decorating station E, as here specifically disclosed, is in theform of a silk screen device. As may perhaps best be seen from FIG. 4,the decorating station comprises a trough or container 36 defined byside and end walls 38 and a bottom wall 40 comprising an appropriatelydesigned silk screen, a mass of paint or ink being adapted to bereceived within the container 36. Rails 42 are provided outside each ofthe container side walls 38, and those rails 42 carry dependingresilient elements 44, the rails 42 and elements 44 extending the entirelength of the containers 36. When a plurality of decorating stations areprovided, such as the stations E and '15. here illustrated, the rails 42and depending resilient elements 44 extend between the stations E and Eas Well as along I the length of those stations respectively.

As may perhaps best be seen from FIG. 3B, the framework A at thedecorating station E comprises a pair of upright standards 46 connectedby upper bar-s 48, with the container 36 and the rails 42 with theirresilient depending members 44 being mounted on and suspended from thebars 48 by means of slidable bolts 50, the suspension preferably beingresilient, as determined by the springs 52 which surround the bolts 50and engage the upper edges of the rails 42 and the lower edges of thebars 48.

Mounted between the bars 48 are a pair of shafts 54 and 56 on which aremounted sprocket wheels 58 and 60 respectively. An endless belt or linkchain 62 extends around the sprocket wheels 58 and 60 and is adapted tobe driven thereby, that chain 62 carrying, along its length, a pluralityof material-expressing elements such as the squeegees 64. The spacingalong the chain 62 of the material-expressing elements 64 corresponds tothe spacing on the belt 16 of the holders D so that, as may be seen in'FIG. 3B, as each holder D with its bottle 2 moves along beneath thecontainer 36 a material-expressing element 64 moves through thecontainer 36 with its tip close to or pressing against the silk screenbottom wall 40, substantially in synchronism and registration with thebottle 2 and its holder D. Guides 65 adjustably rigidly mounted on thebars 48 by plates 67 engage the chain 62 when the elements 64 areperforming their material-expressing function, thereby to press theelements 64 down against the silk screen 40 in predetermined fashion.

As the belt 16 moves along its upwardly inclined reach immediately aboveand to the right of the sprocket wheel '18 the holders D with thebottles 2 therein are moved up toward the containers '36 until, as maybe seen in FIG. 3B, the bottle 2 is pressed up against the elongatedresilient elements 44. Thereafter the path of the belt 16 becomeshorizontal and the bottle 2, in frictional engagement with the resilientmembers 44, as it is translated from left to right is caused to rollalong those resilient members 44, the bottle rotating within the holderD, as is permitted by the rollers 24 on which the bottle 2 rest-s. Henceas each bottle 2 moves along the underside of the container 36 at thedecorating station E, ink, paint or the like will be expressed throughthe silk screen 40 onto the then vertically exposed area of the outersurface of that bottle (this being accomplished by the action of thematerialexpressing member 64), and the bottle will rotate as it movesthe length of the decorating station E, thus continuously presenting newareas of its outer surface to the decoration-producing means so that theappropriate decoration can be applied thereto. The operative length ofthe silk screen 40 is so correlated to the circumference of the bottle 2that decoration is applied to all or any desired portion of the outersurface of the bottle.

When a plurality of decorating stations, such as the stations E and E,are provided, it is essential that the decoration produced by the secondstation E properly register with the decoration previously produced bythe first station E. With the machine of the present invention this isreadily accomplished by keeping the bottle 2 in engagement with theresilient members 44 which depend from the rails 42 as the bottle movefrom the first decorating station E to the second decorating station E.The spacing between those stations, correlated with the circumference ofthe bottles 2, will thus produce a predetermined and known degree ofrotation of a bottle 2 from the time it leaves the first decoratingstation E to the time it enters the second decorating station E, andknowing this fact the specific designing of the silk screen bottom wall40 for the second decorating station E can readily ensure that thedecoration produced thereby will properly register with the decorationpreviously deposited on that bottle 2 by the preceding station E.

It is desirable, although not essential, that after the bottles havebeen decorated they be once again vertically oriented so that they maybe conveyed away from the machine in conventional fashion. To this end,and as may be best seen in FIGS. *5-7, the belt 16 carrying theindividual holders D with their bottles 2 is caused to pass over a fixedguiding and supporting means generally designated 66 which, at the pointindicated by the line 55 in FIG. 2 immediately after the latterdecorating station E, is horizontal and which gradually changes itsorientation, as indicated in FIGS. 6 and 7, taken respectively along thelines 66 and 77 of FIG. 2, until, at the exit end of the apparatus, thestructure 66 is vertical, with the belt 16 also being vertical as itpasses on opposite sides thereof, and with the bottles 2 consequentlybeing similarly oriented. A bottom plate 68 may be provided at thispoint in order to support the bottles 2, and at the very end of themachine, or at any appropriate location adjacent the end, the sidesupporting swords 32 and 34 terminate, thus permitting the individualbottles, now decorated, to be removed one by one from their holders D asthe latter are presented at the end of the machine, the bottles thenbeing conveyed away from the machine in any appropriate fashion.

The driving mechanism for the machine may take any of a wide variety offorms. As here disclosed the motor B drives a belt 70 which in turn,through a gear reducer 72, drives a belt or sprocket chain 74 whichrotates Wheel 76 on drive shaft 78. The left hand end of the drive shaft78, through gearing 80, drives vertical shaft 82 which in turn, throughgearing 84, shaft 85 and gearing 87, rotates the helical screw 6. Theright hand end of shaft 78, through gearing 86, drives shaft 88, whichin turn, through gearing 90, rotates shaft 54 and sprocket wheel 58 inorder to move the link chain 62 which carries the material-expressingmeans 64 at each of the decorating station E and E. The right hand endof shaft 78, through gearing 92, shaft 94, and gearing 96 drives shaft98 on which the sprocket wheel is mounted, that sprocket wheel in turnmoving the chain 16 and the bottle holders B. 'Ihus synchronism of thevarious parts of the machine is positively ensured.

With the machine of the present invention decoration of virtually anydesired type may be applied continuously to bottles, cans or the like,the machine being equally as effective for producing multicolor orcomplex decoration as single color or simple decorations. Bottles may befed thereto or removed therefrom in vertical position if desired, thisrendering the apparatus very adaptable for use in con unction withexisting plant conveyor lines. Because the apparatus functions in acontinuous fashion its rate of productivity is very high, and itsefficacy in applying the desired decorations and particularly inensuring registration between decorations produced at differentdecorating stations is likewise greatly facilitated. The apparatus issimple, all of the operating parts are readily accessible, propersynchronization of the various parts is achieved in a virtuallyfoolproof manner, and the machine may readily be adapted to operate onmany different kinds of objects and on many different sizes of objectsand to produce decorations of virtually any desired character.

While but a single embodiment of the present invention has been herespecifically disclosed, it will be apparent that many variations may bemade therein, all within the scope of the instant invention as definedin the following claims.

I claim:

1. A decorating machine comprising a decorating station havingdecoration-producing means extending therealong in a given direction,means for holding objects with their decoration-receiving surfacesfacing said station and for permitting said objects to rotate about anaxis substantially parallel to said surface and substantiallyperpendicular to said given direction, means moving said holding meanswith said objects therein in said given direction past said station, andmeans for causing said objects to rotate in their respective holdingmeans about said axis in synchronism with their passage past saidstation and for causing said decoration-producing means to producedecorations on said decoration-receiving surfaces of said objects asthey move along said station, said holding means comprising open-sidedmembers having concavities extending longitudinally in a directionsubstationally perpendicular to said given direction, in whichconcavities said objects are adapted to be received with their axesextending substantially along the length of said concavities and withtheir decoration-receiving surfaces extending out from said concavitiesthrough said open sides, said objects being freely rotatable about theiraxes in said members.

2. The decorating machine of claim 1, in which said object-holding meanscomprises a plurality of object holders, said object-moving meanscomprising endless conveyor means on which said holders are mounted andeffective to carry said objects past said station with their said axessubstantially horizontal and then to turn said objects so that theirsaid axes are substantially vertical.

3. In the decorating machine of claim 1, a second similar decoratingstation spaced in said given direction from said first mentionedstation, said moving means beng effective to move said holding meanspast said stations in sequence, and said rotation-causing means beingeffective to cause said objects to rotate in their respective holdingmeans about said axis in synchronism with their passage from one stationto another as well as their passage past each of said stations, therebyto permit accurate registration on said objects of the decorationsproduced by said stations respectively.

4. The decorating machine of claim 1, in which said members compriserollers extending into said concavities on which said objects areadapted to rest and over which said objects freely roll.

5. The decorating machine of claim 4, in which said moving means forsaid holding means is effective to cause said holding means to besubstantially horizontal, open side up, at said decorating station andto be sub- 7 stantially vertical at a point past said decoratingstation.

6. The decorating machine of claim 1, in which said moving means forsaid holding means is effective to cause said holding means to besubstantially horizontal, open side up, at said decorating station andto be substantially vertical at a point past said decorating station.

7. A decorating machine comprising a decorating station havingdecoration-producing means extending therealong in a given direction,means for holding objects with their decoration-receiving surfacesfacing said station and for permitting said objects to rotate about anaxis substantially parallel to said surface and substantiallyperpendicular to said given direction, means moving said holding meanswith said objects therein in said given direction past said station, andmeans for causing said objects to rotate in their respective holdingmeans about said axis in synchronism with their passage past saidstation and for causing said decoration-producing means to producedecorations on said decoration-receiving surfaces of said objects asthey move along said station, said object-holding means comprising aplurality of object holders, said object-moving means comprising endlessconveyor means on which said holders are mounted and effective to carrysaid objects past said station with their said axes substantiallyhorizontal and then to turn said objects so that their said axes aresubstantially vertical.

8. A decorating machine comprising a decorating station havingdecoration-producing means extending therealong in a given direction,means for holding objects with their decoration-receiving surfacesfacing said station and for permitting said objects to rotate about anaxis substantially parallel to said surface and substantiallyperpendicular to said given direction, means moving said holding meanswith said objects therein in said given direction past said station, andmeans for causing said objects to rotate in their respective holdingmeans about said axis in synchronism with their passage past saidstation and for causing said decoration-producing means to producedecorations on said decoration-receiving surfaces of said objects asthey move along said station, said object-holding means being eflYectiveto permit said objects to rotate freely therein about said axis, andsaid rotation-causing means comprises an element at and extending alongsaid station and means for placing said objects in frictional engagementwith said element and rolling them thereover as said moving means movesthem in said given direction past said station, thereby to cause saidobjects to rotate Within their respective holding means as they are thusrolled, and a second similar decorating station spaced in said givendirection from said first mentioned station, said moving means beingeffective to move said holding means past said stations in sequence,said element extending along and between said stations and saidrotation-causing means being effective to retain said objects infrictional engagement with said element as they are moved past andbetween said stations, thereby to permit accurate registration on saidobjects of the decorations produced by said stations respectively.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,027,102 1/1936 Homrnel et a1101123 2,085,126 6/1937 Shurley et a1. 101-124 2,121,491 6/1938 Soubier101123 2,132,818 10/1938 Cone 101-115 2,767,647 10/1956 Hakogi 10140X2,881,699 4/1959 Hakogi 101126 3,220,344 11/1965 Hagerman 1011263,237,555 3/1966 Jones et a1. 101124 X 3,251,298 5/1966 Rudolph et a1.1014O 3,269,305 8/1966 Rossi 10135 3,309,986 3/1967 Worth 10l393,362,520 1/1968 Rudolph et a1. 10l--39 X WILLIAM B. PENN, PrimaryExaminer US. Cl. X.R. 101-123

